Green Bay Packers: Alex Green might sit out with concussion

Green Bay running back Alex Green is stopped by Jacksonville's Jeremy Mincey during the waning moments of the fourth quarter at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Sunday, October 28, 2012. The Packers beat the Jaguars, 25-15. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT)

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- There is a chance that Green Bay Packers running back Alex Green won't be in uniform Sunday, Dec. 23.

If so, he would be the fifth back that the Packers have had miss a game because of injury this season. Three of them -- Cedric Benson, Brandon Saine and Johnny White -- are on injured reserve.

Green suffered a concussion against Chicago Sunday that coach Mike McCarthy said didn't become evident until after the game or on Monday. He and guard T.J. Lang are both working through the NFL's mandated concussion protocol and won't return until cleared by an independent neurologist.

McCarthy said things looked good for Lang to return against Tennessee on Sunday and seemed to indicate the same was true for Green, the Packers' leading rusher with 464 yards on 135 carries. Both Lang and Green were present in the locker room during the media session, which may be a good sign about their prognosis.

The one thing the Packers have found with Green is that he doesn't fumble much. He has had the ball knocked out once but has not lost a fumble in his 157 touches over two years with the Packers.

If Green is out or limited against Tennessee Sunday, the burden falls on recently signed Ryan Grant, recently promoted DuJuan Harris and backfield fixture John Kuhn.

Grant, in just his second game since being added to the roster to fill in for injured James Starks, lost a fumble against the Bears after cornerback Charles "Peanut" Tillman executed one of his textbook punches on the ball.

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The coaches didn't banish Grant to the bench and fed him the ball five more times.

"Yeah, that's 'Peanut,' " Grant said with a sigh. "But that's no excuse. I have to hold onto the ball."

Over their careers with the Packers, Grant and Kuhn have proved fairly reliable in the cold weather, although both lost fumbles in the Packers' playoff loss to the New York Giants last year in slightly below freezing temperatures.

The wild card is Harris, who has been seeing more action since being promoted from the practice squad Dec. 1. He grew up in Florida and played at Troy in Alabama, so he is new to the frozen football.

He survived a 33-degree kickoff temperature against Detroit and a 44-degree kickoff temperature at Chicago but may be in for worse if a cold front pushes in after the midweek snowstorm.

McCarthy had to alter his practice routine because of all the injuries, but that's nothing new. It's been that way for a while because so many players have missed practice.

"Our practice structure has been the same for about the last three weeks, so we're adhering to that as far as the number of reps that we're doing on the field, walk-throughs and so forth," McCarthy said. "I think we're at the minimum point of what we need to do to get ready for a game.

"But we do have walk-throughs in the gym and we have a lot of time in the classroom getting the players ready. We'll be ready to go Sunday."

Blocking it out

McCarthy was extremely complimentary of the performance wide receiver James Jones had against the Bears.

Especially his blocking.

"It means the most to me when he talks about the blocking," said Jones, who had three touchdown catches and leads the league with 12. "I felt like I played my most complete game and that was strictly because I blocked well.

"The DB might have touched the running back one time when I was in the game blocking. I felt good about that."

Not backing down

Wide receiver Greg Jennings said what he meant when he declared on a national radio show that he hopes Minnesota running back Adrian Peterson breaks the all-time rushing record.

Peterson just happens to play the Packers in the season finale.

Jennings has been taking some heat for wishing an opponent -- especially from the dreaded Vikings -- breaks a record against his defense.

"Honestly, I don't care," he said. "It's one of those situations where he's playing against us in the last game of the season so if he were to get it, it would have to be against us.

"Do you want our defense to do that and let him get it? No. But if he does get it, I'm not going to be (ticked off). That's the thing. You have to learn to appreciate what you have out there. I mean, who knows if that will ever happen?"

New addition

The Packers signed cornerback Otis Merrill to the practice squad Wednesday.

Merrill was signed as an undrafted free agent from Illinois State after taking part in a Packers rookie camp on a tryout basis. He made it to training camp and showed outstanding speed as a kickoff returner, taking one 60 yards against the Cleveland Browns in the second exhibition game.